Establishing a citizen-science groundwater monitoring network for Brackenfell, Western Cape

This report by GEOSS South Africa, commissioned by WWF South Africa, details the establishment of a citizen-science groundwater monitoring network in the Brackenfell residential and industrial area of the Western Cape. The project was initiated to address the unregulated increase in borehole drilling and groundwater abstraction following the 2015-2019 drought. The study combined desktop research and a field hydrocensus to identify groundwater users and deploy water level dataloggers, with the resulting data integrated into a public Groundwater Dashboard for the Table Mountain Water Source Area.

• The 2015-2019 drought led to a significant increase in the number of boreholes and wellpoints in the Western Cape and City of Cape Town, resulting in an unquantified rise in groundwater abstraction volumes.
• A hydrocensus of 111 properties in Brackenfell found that 33.3% of visited properties completed surveys, identifying 14 boreholes and 23 wellpoints. Most of these were drilled between 2016 and 2020, indicating they were a response to the drought.
• Boreholes in the Brackenfell area typically range in depth from 30 to 115 metres, primarily targeting the quartzitic sandstones of the Tygerberg Formation.
• Stakeholders in the study area expressed significant concerns regarding groundwater quality, specifically the high iron content which has caused red staining on walls, as well as risks of over-abstraction and contamination.
• A monitoring network consisting of four Solinst Leveloggers was deployed in boreholes at private residences, schools, and industry between January and March 2022. Initial data from March 2022 showed rest water levels between 9 and 28 mbgl and electrical conductivity (EC) values between 94.3 and 161 mS/m, which are classified as "good".
• Monitoring data is manually downloaded and uploaded to the Groundwater Dashboards - Table Mountain Water Source Area (groundwaterinfo.africa) to provide visibility to stakeholders on seasonal fluctuations and regional abstraction effects.

APA

Tomlinson, A., Holloway, M., & Barrow, D. (2022). Establishing a citizen-science groundwater monitoring network for Brackenfell, Western Cape. WWF South Africa. https://wwfafrica.awsassets.panda.org/downloads/3_annexure_3_appendix_a_brackenfell.pdf

Chicago

Tomlinson, Ashleigh, Michael Holloway, and Dale Barrow. Establishing a citizen-science groundwater monitoring network for Brackenfell, Western Cape. WWF South Africa, 2022. https://wwfafrica.awsassets.panda.org/downloads/3_annexure_3_appendix_a_brackenfell.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Tomlinson |first1=Ashleigh |last2=Holloway |first2=Michael |last3=Barrow |first3=Dale |title=Establishing a citizen-science groundwater monitoring network for Brackenfell, Western Cape |publisher=WWF South Africa |date=14 April 2022 |url=https://wwfafrica.awsassets.panda.org/downloads/3_annexure_3_appendix_a_brackenfell.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{tomlinson2022establishing, author = {Tomlinson, Ashleigh and Holloway, Michael and Barrow, Dale}, title = {{Establishing a citizen-science groundwater monitoring network for Brackenfell, Western Cape}}, institution = {WWF South Africa}, year = {2022}, month = apr, url = {https://wwfafrica.awsassets.panda.org/downloads/3_annexure_3_appendix_a_brackenfell.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }